News & Public Affairs

St. Petersburg mayor Bill Foster champions his cityâs transportation accomplishments. At a Suncoast Tiger Bay luncheon Wednesday afternoon he said he fully supports implementing light rail to connect to other cities in the region.

Tiger Bay meetings boast the ability of members to carve a politician up for lunch. St. Pete Mayor Bill Foster found himself on that platter answering questions he said he didnât want to answer. B...

Some board members the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority started planning their strategy to address new state legislation that could either dissolve the organization, or merge it with the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority, or PSTA. HART attorney Chip Fletcher discussed the implications of Florida Senate Bill 192 during this morningâs Major Projects Committee.

Direct trolley routes connecting downtown St. Petersburg to south Pinellas beaches along Central Avenue began yesterday. Routes are now available from the Pier all the way to Pass-a-Grille beach for a two-dollar fare.

Before the opening of these routes, residents and tourists wanting to use public transportation to get from the Bay to the beach had to make several transfers. Now, they can hop on a trolley at any of seven stops and stay on that same bus until they reach their destination....

Yesterday the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority, or HART, approved a 100 million dollar budget for the next fiscal year. Members of the transit union gave up on demands for a wage increase, as well as a separate step increase. The Board also voted unanimously to raise the millage rate slightly to half a mil.

The Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority plans to increase the millage rate on a typical property owner by about 41 cents per year. Thatâs even though HARTâs overall proposed budget is being reduced by 3.2 percent. Director of planning Mary Shavalier said a decrease in revenue from property taxes is making matters more difficult.

And Shavalier said HART may partner with other organizations to compensate for any additional service needs around the coun...

This morning, the Board of Hillsboroughâs transit agency, HART, raised the maximum amount it can assess homeowners for the countyâs bus and other transportation services. During the two hour meeting the board also addressed collective bargaining and changes to In-Town-Trolley routes.

Meeting rising costs without asking tax payers to pony up is becoming more and more difficult in a struggling economy and issues concerning transportation are no exception. In their first meeting since Ju...

According to New York Public Transit Association, public transportation saves Americans the equivalent of 4.2 billion gallons of gasoline annually. But Tampa Bay might be missing out on some of those efficiencies because due to budget cuts, transit agencies are cutting bus services and next year, more citizens may be forced to carpool or drive.

Falling revenue may mean more cuts for Hillsborough County bus services. Today the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authorityâs Board of Directors approved a preliminary budget that would ax fifteen stops, and drastically reduce service in some areas. Philip Hale, the agencyâs interim CEO, said drawing on reserves has prevented such cuts in the past, but thatâs not an option anymore.

"For the last three years we have been, in essence, balancing the budget, adding additional servic...

Public transit is clearly a tough sell in Florida these days, though skyrocketing gas prices are making the case for alternative transportation. Facing increases in demand and decreases in funding, transit officials may have to do more with less.

The state legislature created Tampa Bay Area Regional Transportation Authority, known commonly as TBARTA, in 2007, when times were different. Facing cuts in state funding, executive director Bob Clifford said the organiza...

Disabled bus riders who rely on Pinellas Countyâs on-demand bus system to get around will have to make a little more room in their budgets if they want to keep riding. The countyâs transit board raised the systemâs fares by 50 cents in what theyâre calling a stop-gap measure to help deal with massive revenue shortfalls.